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2017 NFL Opening Lines for Week One

2017 NFL Opening Lines for Week One of the Regular Season

By Loot, NFL Handicapper, Lootmeister.com

Week one in the NFL season is unique for many reasons. There is a newness of it with teams starting a new season, a time where teams are hopeful. Changes were made, as struggling teams look to take a step forward, while the better teams look to maintain their level or even take it to the next level. It's up to the bettor to take a step into the unknown. When making bets after the season already started, we have a better grip on what's happening. But even after a long buildup in preseason, a lot of this qualifies as betting into the dark.

When things are a little murky and undefined that can represent the most opportunity for the enterprising bettor. There is a lot that can go right or wrong with teams and players from now until the beginning of the regular season. But this is a time to really capitalize off of any feelings you have about different teams or players. If you think a team is going to be appreciably better or worse than what the common perception is, why wait for that story to grow teeth? Or if you feel like a rookie might really help turn a team around, why wait until he showcases his wares for all to see so the price gets driven down? Now is an ideal time to pounce for bettors who are really honing in on something that others might be neglecting.

These bets also allow for some reflection, with bettors getting three-plus months to mull the point spreads and totals. Normally, we get like 5 days max to consider the positions we are going to take with NFL regular season games. With these opening lines put up for week one games so far in advance, bettors get the rare chance to really let their picks ruminate for a good amount of time.

Still, it takes a certain amount of moxie to go out on a limb with week one bets so far in advance. Any number of things can, and often will, throw a different light on a team. Just looking at last season, a lot of teams didn't look the same right before the season as they looked when training camp began. A key player can go down to injury. And a lot of those personnel losses are not losses a team can absorb. It might be better to look toward teams that aren't so reliant on single individual players, especially if those players have a long history of getting hurt.

But some of these lines are soft and that's when the sharp betting man tends to pounce. These lines aren't tested by the public, being that there simply aren't a lot of people focusing on week one games of the regular season yet. And with all the personnel and coaching changes made league-wide, there's a lot of guesswork that figures into constructing these point spreads and totals. Again, that's what bettors should be looking for. Sure, we'll have our money tied up for a bit and we're taking a leap-of-faith to some degree, but if looking to make a few well-placed bets, there's some definite upside to being early to the party when betting on week one of the NFL regular season.

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Below, we list the point spreads and totals for each matchup of the first week of the NFL season. The season starts with a Thursday Night Football matchup between the Chiefs and the defending Super Bowl Champion Patriots. The week concludes typically with a pair of MNF games. Good luck! Here are the lines and totals:

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